Samantha Power is a piece of work; I can’t see how she would be successful in a world-class position (as U.N. ambassador).
She spelled out her idealistic theories ten years ago:
New Republic, Mar 3, 2003
Force Full – BY SAMANTHA POWER

U.S. foreign policy should inject first-order concern for human rights into every policy decision. American decision-makers must understand how damaging a foreign policy that privileges order and profit over justice really is in the long term. American decision-makers in every branch of government, in every department (the Pentagon frequently undermines State Department stands on human rights), and in every bureau should ask: What are the likely human consequences of this arms deal? Of this aid package? Of this oil contract? Of this Security Council vote? Of this treaty rejection or unsigning? Of this photo op with this abusive foreign leader? Every decision would require a “full cost accounting”– in which the harm to and welfare of foreign citizens would constitute a key variable in the cost-benefit calculus.

Power’s influence as presidential advisor was instrumental in the Libya fiasco.

Our best judgment,” she said, defending the decision to establish a no-fly zone to prevent atrocities, was that failure to do so would have been “extremely chilling, deadly and indeed a stain on our collective conscience.”

and then came the illegal “limited humanitarian intervention” which decisively unseated an allied government and changed North Africa for the worse.

“This is a limited humanitarian intervention, not war,” White House Middle East strategist Dennis Ross, National Security Council strategic planning official Derek Chollet, and two military officials told a group of outside foreign policy experts invited to a briefing at the White House Roosevelt Room Tuesday.

One can only imagine how much more damage Power can create if she is confirmed.

Posted by: Don Bacon | Jun 8 2013 18:07 utc | 3

@Watson #4 — Ms. Power may be the perfect representative of US foreign policy
US foreign policy can never be primarily based on human rights, as Powers contends. Many countries (besides the U.S.) have human rights problems, and Powers was correct to be concerned about Rwanda. But that concern can never be the primary policy driver — there are other more important concerns. And it can be taken too far. This was illustrated in Libya. Now perhaps Powers would (if she could) contend that the U.S. went too far in Libya, distorting her objectives. But Libya still serves as a bad example and yes, she is being willfully ignorant not to recognize it.
Her idealism is simply over-riding of other considerations. That may be an admirable trait, but it won’t work in the real realpolitik world. Powers again from the article:

We will gripe about the shortage of democracy in Palestine, but not in Pakistan. We will lambaste Yasir Arafat, investing significant political capital in regime change, but we will only ritualistically take issue with Ariel Sharon. We will call upon South Africa to lift its trade barriers, but we will maintain farm, textile, and steel subsidies. One doesn’t have to fetishize consistency, a known impossibility in political life, to note that systematic and sustained inconsistencies of this magnitude leave others confused and us disdained. Different circumstances and security threats require different responses, but it is incumbent on American officials to explain the discrepancies rather than to pretend they don’t exist.

Perhaps the Libya failure will come up at the Senate confirmation hearing (just kidding).

Posted by: Don Bacon | Jun 8 2013 18:53 utc | 5

The Guardian piles on: Boundless Informant: the NSA’s secret tool to track global surveillance data

A snapshot of the Boundless Informant data, contained in a top secret NSA “global heat map” seen by the Guardian, shows that in March 2013 the agency collected 97bn pieces of intelligence from computer networks worldwide.
…

Posted by: b | Jun 8 2013 19:28 utc | 7

@WB #6 — Why do people act outraged when the Empire appoints what it sees as the correct person for the post?
1. Nobody is acting outraged, except possibly yourself.
2. In a democracy it is our responsibility to assess what we adjudge as wrongful government moves, in in this case an unqualified nominee. Your alternative, silence, is unacceptable.

Posted by: Don Bacon | Jun 8 2013 20:25 utc | 9

@#10:
I never said it was unacceptable to belly-ache as you put it, merely offered an observation as to why some people act surprised at a particular appointment. As to the postings you cite as evidence of my belly-aching, I would have thought it pretty obvious that they’re not written by me nor could you call them belly-aching. But I’m sorry I caused offense.

Posted by: William Bowles | Jun 8 2013 22:09 utc | 11

@b #7
Interesting that Iran (expected), Pakistan and Jordan are the top three countries subjected to surveillance. Perhaps we should keep closer tabs on Jordan.

Posted by: Don Bacon | Jun 8 2013 22:57 utc | 13

The problem isn’t with Mrs. rice or Mrs. powers. The problem is that everyone with a brain knows that whoever happens to be zusa ambassador to the UN or whatever is a wheel in the ultimate evil machinery zusa.
Whatever Mr. or Mrs. whoever happens to say for zusa will be lies, dirty, imperialistic, ignorant, arrogant – and completely meaningless.
Yes, meaningless. Because, while the western presstitutes and puppets continue their wet dreams of power, zusa has become widely meaningless. It is more a question of politeness than of necessity to talk to zusa representatives.
Which, btw. is my main point of criticism toward Russia and China; they are too polite. They should simply say “Listen, obama, take care of your own country. Quite probably you will fail to repair your system, your currency, and your bridges and roads because you let it rot too long but try it anyway. If you dare once more to play dirty games or otherwise unnerving us, we’ll simply push you over the edge you ignored all those years.”

Posted by: Mr. Pragma | Jun 8 2013 23:31 utc | 15

@ William Bowles @ 6.
Amen.
America has become an ideological sewer and will stay that way until it implodes/gets ‘Raptured’ (by Satanists).

Posted by: Hoarsewhisperer | Jun 9 2013 0:33 utc | 17

The America we live in has lost it’s way. The freedom people used to have, even the effen food we eat have been modified, altered, changed. A man like Ernest Hemmingway would vomit at this, Walt Whitman would thunder against this, Dr. King would not want to wake up. All those that could speak up are either dead like Lennon, silenced like Perot, co-opted, bought or ignored like Chomsky, or declared a traitor like Manning. The right to privacy has so many holes poked through pretty soon, I’ll be able to drive my car through them. NAFTA was the biggest scam foisted on this country. This whole discourse on Human rights has become a virtual tyranny, Samantha Powers is an agent of Tyranny, she thinks she’s one of the “good guys”. Bitch they ain’t nothin good about what you doin?
You helped Al Qaeda take over a country, a secular country that respected woman’s rights and provided for millions. You helped destroy thousands of families and lives you horrible witch. The North Koreans can do whatever they want in my book, if Israel can be an aggressive expansionist state so can the DPRK.

Posted by: Fernando | Jun 10 2013 5:14 utc | 19

the romans had Bread and circuses to keep the masses content
we have McDonalds and Superbowl

Posted by: brian | Jun 10 2013 13:21 utc | 21